Taiwan's Taiex was trading 1.5 per cent lower, while South Korea's Kospi sank 3.1 per cent to 5,293.26. File photo: Wikimedia commons
Asian markets slump as Wall Street records worst day since Iran war
Wall Street fell to its worst drop since the Iran war began, with the S&P 500 sinking 1.7 per cent for its worst day as the Iran war de-escalation hopes fade
Hong Kong, Mar 27 (AP) Asian shares mostly fell Friday after Wall Street had its worst day since the start of the Iran war over growing doubts about a de-escalation.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index dropped 1.2 per cent to 52,982.86 in early trading. South Korea's Kospi sank 3.1 per cent to 5,293.26.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 0.1 per cent to 24,825.50, while the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.1 per cent to 3,893.21.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.5 per cent, while Taiwan's Taiex was trading 1.5 per cent lower.
On Thursday, Wall Street fell to its worst drop since the Iran war began, with the S&P 500 sinking 1.7 per cent for its worst day since January to 6,477.16.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1 per cent to 45,960.11.
The Nasdaq composite slumped 2.4 per cent to 21,408.08, and is off 10 per cent below its recent all-time high in what is considered a “correction.” Expectations this week of de-escalation negotiations between Washington and Tehran have sent markets into disarray.
Shortly after Wall Street trading closed Thursday, US President Donald Trump said he was postponing a threatened attack on Iran's energy facilities as he further delayed until April 6 a deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for oil and gas transport.
Doubts over a possible end to the war grew after Iran rejected a US ceasefire proposal and issued a counterproposal, while the US was sending more troops to the region.
Oil prices fell again on Friday after earlier gains. Brent crude futures, the international standard, was down 1.1 per cent to USD 100.77 per barrel. It was above USD 102 on Thursday.
Benchmark US crude fell 1.3 per cent early Wednesday to USD 93.30 a barrel.
In other dealings early Friday, gold and silver prices rose. Gold's price was up 1 per cent to USD 4,420.70 per ounce. The price of silver was 1.6 per cent higher to USD 69.04.
The US dollar fell to 159.56 Japanese yen from 159.81 yen. The euro was trading at USD 1.1539, up from USD 1.1527. AP